Lack of innovation crippling quality teaching – GNAT

Deputy General Secretary of the Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT) in-charge of professional development, Ms Gifty Apanbil, on Thursday said lack of innovation in the educational sector is affecting the delivery of quality teaching.

"Some people will want to be innovative but our system is such that it does not allow innovation and once it does not allow innovation, people who have the urge to innovate things are crippled and frustrating and they leave the profession.

"Majority of teachers are leaving the job because of frustration...," she observed.

Ms Apanbil made the observation during the 57th Annual GNAT/CTF Professional workshop for teachers of Volta and Oti regions held at the St. Francis College of Education at Hohoe in the Volta Region.

She said quality education delivery entailed quality teachings and learning environment, infrastructure and well-motivated children prepared to learn and supported by their parents as well as a supportive community.

Ms Apanbil said posting of teachers to remote areas without incentives was also frustrating them.

She, therefore, called on the Ghana Education Service to take a second look at policies such as the recruitment, reposting and retention, saying, the only way to retain teachers was to create necessary conditions that would make teachers enjoy working.

Ms Apanbil also called on the government to invest in vocational and technical education by providing the needed facilities and infrastructure to offer employable skills to the youth and reduce unemployment.

She said teachers were being taken through the new curriculum and prayed the relevant books and resources be made available for the effective implementation of the curriculum.